"It will pass" – this is not just a phrase, but a whole culture. When there is pain, the first reaction is often not "to make an appointment with a doctor", but "to drink something, to apply something, to lie down". As long as there is a pulse, rakia will be applied, tea from "unidentified herbs" will be drunk, and we will swear that "we don't need a doctor". Pain is not a signal, but a rival – something that must be overcome, not heard. Behind this supposedly "healthy rural logic" lies statistics that doesn't sound romantic at all.
Prevention? "I don't need it, I feel healthy"
Data from national surveys are categorical: a large part of Bulgarians do not even get to prevention. According to various sources, between 37% and 43% of adults have never been or have not attended a mandatory preventive examination. About 2 million people simply miss these check-ups year after year. The most common answer why: "I don't need it, I feel healthy".
Official information shows that, according to NHIF data for one of the last years, about 40% of Bulgarians have not had a preventive examination. And this is happening against the background of constant calls for early diagnosis of oncological, cardiovascular and chronic diseases. While in many European countries prevention is something natural, in our country it is perceived almost as an "extra" – for people who "have time" to go to doctors.
Self-medication: the home pharmacy as the first "first aid"
When something hurts, the first stop is rarely the personal doctor's office. Studies show that two out of every three Bulgarians resort to self-medication. 61.5% of respondents admit that they go to the doctor only after "what has been tried at home" has not worked. Only about 19% seek a specialist at the first symptoms.
The home pharmacy is almost a national symbol – 97.5% of families have a prepared cabinet with medicines "of first necessity". It often has everything – from painkillers and antibiotics to syrups and drops left over from previous illnesses. 59% of people say they rely on natural remedies and herbs, and 71% still use traditional medicine – but often at their own discretion. Nearly 68% have replaced a medicine prescribed by a doctor with a cheaper "same" one, without consultation.
Pain as a "normal background"
Doctors have been warning for years that "the longer the suffering, the less the chance of healing". In Bulgarian culture, however, pain – especially chronic – is often normalized. "My lower back hurts, but it's normal at this age", "My head is splitting, but it's from nerves", "My stomach bothers me, but I'll have some tea" – these sentences are part of everyday life.
Thus, people live with pain in joints, back, head, abdomen for months and years without undergoing examinations. When they finally enter the office, the diagnosis is often no longer "functional discomfort", but a chronic disease, wear and tear or an advanced stage of a disease that could have been controlled much earlier. Pain, endured "heroically", turns into longer and more expensive treatment.
Money, distrust and fatigue from the system
The culture of "it will pass" is not born in a vacuum. It is based on real problems in the health system and in the pocket. According to NSI data, households spent an average of about BGN 610 per person for health in 2023 – 11.7% more compared to 2022. The share of healthcare spending in the budget is gradually increasing and reaches over 6% of all expenses. At the same time, Bulgaria is among the countries in the EU with the highest direct payments from patients – personal money for medicines, examinations and dentistry weighs heavily on the family budget.
A private examination with a specialist in many cities costs between BGN 50 and BGN 200, and a filling can reach BGN 150. For a household that can barely make ends meet, this is a real dilemma: to pay for an examination for "a headache", or to wait and see if it "just doesn't pass". To this we add the low trust in the system – one study shows that only about 37% of Bulgarians are satisfied with the health system, compared to nearly 57% on average for Europe. Against this background, "I will help myself" sounds not only like stubbornness, but also as a defense.
Mental health: "I'm fine, I'm just tired"
An interesting detail is that when assessing their mental health, Bulgarians massively say that "they have no problem". In a European study, about 80% of Bulgarian participants state that their mental health is good – the second highest result in the EU. At the same time, psychologists and psychiatrists report more cases of burnout, anxiety and depressive conditions.
Only one in ten respondents seeks support for their mental health. The rest cope in the well-known model: "I will grit my teeth", "I don't have time to fall apart", "others are worse". Again, the culture of "it will pass", but this time not with physical pain, but with emotional exhaustion.
Paradox: we trust doctors, but we get to them late
The paradox is that, despite everything, people still consider doctors the most credible source of health advice. In one study, 78% of respondents identify doctors as the most reliable authority on health topics, with family and friends in second place. Influencers and politicians are at the bottom of the trust ranking.
And yet, most people first treat themselves and only then seek professional help. This coexistence between trust and postponement is explained by a combination of factors: habits from the past, lack of time, concern about expenses, fear of a "bad diagnosis". Many people prefer not to know than to hear something that will change their lives.
The price of "it will pass": longer, more expensive and more painful treatment
In health statistics, this culture turns into solid numbers: late-detected oncological diseases, severe complications in chronic diseases, more sick days, higher drug costs. About a third of current healthcare costs are borne directly by households, and every year healthcare costs increase by new percentages. In other words – the "saved" money from prevention often comes back as a larger bill in the advanced stage of the disease.
The pain that we have "swallowed" returns in the form of longer therapy, more tests, more fears. And something more immeasurable – as a feeling that our body has "betrayed", without admitting that we have left it without timely care.
How can we get out of "it will pass" without blaming people
It's easy to blame people for "not going on time", but the truth is that change comes through a combination of more accessible medicine, more understandable messages and small personal decisions. No poster can compensate for an hour of waiting in front of an office, rude treatment or an impossible fee. But there are things that can be changed:
- to facilitate booking an appointment and reduce unnecessary bureaucratic steps;
- to talk about prevention in simple, human language, and not just with slogans;
- to give specific examples of how early diagnosis has saved time, money and pain;
- to normalize seeking help – both physical and mental – before we are "on the brink".
And on a personal level – to change only one line. Instead of "it will pass", let's say "it will check". Let's check a pain, a spot, a node, insomnia. This does not make us weak or hypochondriacs. It makes us a little more responsible for the only capital that has no duplicate – our own health.